Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1887-11-26
NATIONAL FESTIVALS.
HOW THEY ARE OBSERVED IN
FOREIGN LANDS.
Professions and Parades-Europeans Do
Not Celebrate the Birthdays of Their
Deceased Great Memo Holiday to
Compare With Our Thanksgiving.

A purely American feast is Thanksgiv-
ing Day. No people in Europe celebrate
it. In fact, there is significant differ
ence between the kind and number of
public festivals held in the Old and the
New World. 1t is almost inconsistent
with the fact that European nations have
been so many centuries under "the paci-
flying influences of religion and civiliza-
ton that they celebrate, in most every
one of their public festivals, victories
obtained in warfare or anniversaries of
living sovereigns. The memory of de-
ceased heroes has no celebrations in
Europe. There is Washington's Birth
day here, but they have no Hermandad's
Day in Germany, no Wilhelmus' Day in
the Netherlands
or course, nothing can be said against
the parading of soldiers or the fireworks,
or against anything else done to exalt or
to f1atter national pride or to strengthen
patriotic love. But it does seem a little
queer to see religion mixed up with poll
tics and warfare to the extent that it is
During the Franco German war, for in
stance, in every proclamation of either
emperor and of every general on either
side, a strong sense of security was ex-
pressed as to the undoubted assistance of
holy powers. with God for King and
Fatherland" were the words engraved
on the burbies of German hussars. "The
Lord always protects true Frenchmen,"
said Napoleon in his dispatches. Nay,
the first few victories won, Ger
man newspapers even went so far
as to refer to 1.-THE old God of Ger
many" as if the Lord had, of old, showed
adecided prejudice in favor of the Water
land.
The official pomp of professions and
parades is intended to give the affair
an appearance as if every subject had
sincere interest and pleasure in the festi-
walls, whatever they be, but how strangely
40 The newspaper reports compare to the
bills paid by the governments for the So
called "secret eXpensesw These secret
expenses are well known to be for extra
police forces and for professional cheer
ers. The latter persons are sadly needed
indeed, for most of the European feasts
are but court-festivals or military cele-
brations, in which only few people take
agenuine interest. The laborers don't be-
cause they have not the wherewithal
to have fun; the merchants don't
because they are, after ALL the
ones who pay for those secret ex-
penses, and the soldiers themselves
are sure to prefer day off to one passed
in full array on a parade field Military
men are even used for more classical
if not more interesting duties than these
Under one of Prussia's kings, the great
Frederick, believe, number of his tall
est grenadiers were selected, fixed up and
drilled, to pose for statues during an
evening party, held in the Kings gar
dens, to celebrate his birthday. How
ever immovable German warriors are
able to stand in the ranks, it must have
been a trying affair for these simple
Hanses and Yahcobs to stand as Apollos
and Jupiters for several hours each on
pedestal in the night air, their heads on
level with dripping tallow-candles, and
their manly forms classically draped or
denuded.
Soldiers are no more used for similar
purposes, but national festivals in Europe
are less national than ever. The Ger
mans have their schuetzenfest once a
year, which is but general beer-drinking
and hugging on dancing floors. The
French have similar fetes. As to their
June celebrations, they are as shallow as
they are distasteful to half of the popu-
lation. Even religious holidays are for
the majority but occasions for merry
making. They are mere holidays, not
holy days. The theatres and public
houses do their best business on Sundays,
but the Hollanders beat even this record.
Dutch laborers often have such good
time on Sunday that they are totally
incapable of work on Monday ST.
Nicolas feast, celebrated yearly in Hol-
land, and the Dutch kermis are indescrib-
able pandemoniums of drunkenness and
immortality. Among all these festivals
there is none like the Thanksgiving Day
of Americans-none so purely religious,
none so touching, none so worthy of imi-
tation. Thanksgiving Day is fully what
its name indicates, truly national feast,
much more welcome to the people, and
in its very simplicity grander than any
military celebration or festival at SOW
areign's court.
A FOREIGNER IN AMERICA.
THE FIRST RAILWAY IN AMERICA.